The Rev. Paul Clogan, 74, a priest at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church in Horseshoe Falls, Texas, was ordained in 1999 after spending 35 years teaching English in Texas.

Both Texas communities are about 50 miles northwest of Austin.

Clogan was born in 1931 in Boston and became a priest after he was widowed. He was an English professor for 35 years before becoming a priest.

After his ordination in Maine, Clogan served as chaplain of Eastern Maine Medical Center and St. Joseph Hospital, both in Bangor, for one month.

In August 1999, he was named parish administrator of Holy Name Catholic Church in Machias and St. Michael Mission in Cherryfield, where he served for 14 months. In January 2001, he transferred to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Central Texas.

Clogan was arrested on Friday after a 16-year-old boy told a theater manager that the priest had groped him about an hour into "King Kong," the Austin American-Statesman reported Tuesday.

He was charged with indecency with a minor by sexual contact, a felony in Texas. A date for his first court appearance has not been set. Clogan is free on bail.

The priest has been removed from active ministry in Texas until the case is resolved, Bishop Gregory Aymond, Clogan's superior in Texas, told the Austin newspaper.

The bishop asked parishioners to pray for Clogan and his alleged victim in a letter read to parishioners at Masses over the weekend.

"Even in the midst of difficulties and trials, God is faithful and able to provide healing," Aymond wrote.

Clogan does not have a history of sexual abuse, according to diocesan officials in Texas and Maine.